Boat Trip 2008-Day 1

Today marks the first full day of the annual Morgan Boat Trip. We actually got started last night. Some friends of ours, The Campbell's, joined us on the push North starting around 6pm last night. I drove home from work with Bobbi and Bruce and Bob got the boats fueled up and ready to go. Rhett and Bob were working from home yesterday so they were just waiting on me to wrap up at work. It was a really nice night, if a bit chilly, and we had a pleasant trip. Originally we'd planned to stop at Port Ludlow for the evening, but given the nice weather we decided to push on to Port Townsend. We anchored for the night, rowed the pups to shore around 1am and were back and at it around 5:40am this morning.

Today is also Bob's 35th birthday! :-) I cooked him a breakfast burrito this morning and decided to stick a candle in it. Probably the first and last Birthday breakfast burrito Bob will ever enjoy :-)

Right now it is 8:30am. Rhett scarfed down breakfast and then decided he was headed back to bed where he remains. Bob is on deck with his remote control autopilot seeming happy with life.

We are headed to Henry Island outstation tonight and will probably dinghy over to Roche Harbor this evening to wander around.

Opening Day 2008

Opening Day 2008 has come and gone. I (Bob) brought the boat in Portage Bay on the last Sunday of April. The wind was calm, but very cloudy. Not much fun. No real drama.

Gone With The Wind was stern tied at the end of the Seattle Yacht Club's temporary Opening Day dock, name Dock 0 (yes it is just South of Dock 1). This was Helly's first Opening Day, and she was quite a hit. She spent much of Friday under the dodger watching the world go bye. I expect she will be a lot of fun on the big cruise this summer.

To everyone who was on Dock 0, thank you for a great year. We had a great time catching up with our friends from other clubs, and cannot wait to see everyone out and about on Puget Sound this summer.

Bainbridge Island - First boat trip of 2008

Well, this weekend kicked off 2008 Boating for the Morgans. We stayed on the boat on Thursday night and I (Cae) got up on Friday and walked the 4 miles into the city to go to work. Meanwhile Bob, who was working from home, headed over to Bainbridge Island at about 6:30am with the pups.

Along with a new house, we have a new family member, Helly. She is a Min Pin like Coop and is just about 7 months old now. She seems to really like the boat so far, thank goodness! Her only bad habit is that she can't seem to figure out it isn't cool to hop onto the dining table and from there to the kitchen cabinets. I guess that is what Lysol was made for. Anyway, she's adjusted well to the boat and we think she'll be pretty easy to deal with.

So, after work I walked down to the ferry dock and caught the 4:40 over to meet Bob and the pups. The weather was great! We bought some groceries for dinner and grilled out on the boat. Saturday morning we awoke to glorious sunshine! Finally! It was about 75 degrees and absolutely beautiful. We decided to walk into town after having lunch at the Public House restaurant and wandered into an Art Gallery. The artist came by and we found out his name was Yuri something and it was his first trip to the United States. Every time he visits a new city, he buys a map and attaches it to a canvas. He then paints his impressions of the city over it. Bob and I really loved this painting, but unfortunately it was $4,800. Not in the budget these days. Anyway, it was really cool. We also met a director, whose name I promptly forgot, who apparently was a fairly big wig guy in Hollywood. Pretty cool. We wandered back to the boat and spent the afternoon reading.

Sunday morning, we awoke to 40 something degrees and drizzle. Weird. Yesterday, 75, today 45. Oh well. We lazed around during the morning and made it home around 4:00pm. Overall, it was a nice weekend and a great kick off to the boating season.

July 6, 2007 – Toba Wildernest Resort

This morning we pulled up the hook in Walsh Cove and motored the whopping 3 miles to Toba Wildernest Resort. Talk about remote. A couple (Kyle and Andrea Hunter) with an 18 month little girl run the “resort”. Interestingly enough, they actually live here full time, winter too. I can’t imagine how isolated it must be when the cold weather rolls in. I would imagine that months go by where they only talk to each other. It must be like a throwback to the days when people really lived off the land. They were a cheerful bunch and seemed to enjoy the lifestyle. Kyle, who helped us dock GONE WITH THE WIND, was a chatty fellow. I guess if you live in the wilderness by yourself, visiting with the people who spend their summers up here probably keeps you from going bonkers. Anyway, more about the “resort” itself. Basically, there is a rugged dock with water, but no power. At the top of the dock is a very small store that sells ice and soda and a few other items. There is a shower and toilet cabin and then several other cabins available for rent. Luckily, there was a nice starboard tie available for us giving us a perfect view. We docked with relative ease, the only casualty being Cooper’s tennis ball. Naturally it made sense for him to toss it overboard while we were trying to get into our space. Bob rescued it later in the dinghy, but overall it was fairly uneventful.

The view is easily one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. In the mountains to the north you can see what is referred to as glacial fields. Huge fields of snow and ice perched at the tops of the majestic mountain peaks. By the very nature of where the docks sit, there is a constant breeze. There is a river maybe 50 feet from our stern that dumps out into Toba Inlet. Apparently were we to continue to travel to the top of the inlet, there are waterfalls and another larger river.

After we docked the boat, Bob and I decided to give the pups some time to rest while we hiked up to a waterfall. It was a relatively short but vigorous hike to the top. The man who originally carved out a bit of civilization on this land was very industrious. A hydro plant made use of the river to generate power. There’s an elaborate piping system carrying the water down from the top of the waterfall and into a cistern, which then feeds down into the hydro plant. Fresh water is also piped down as well. All we could think was that it must have been back-breaking labor to build it all. We were very impressed.

The top of the waterfall was very steep and ropes were tied to trees to help you climb up the embankments. It was well worth it in the end. The waterfall was several hundred feet high and while sitting on the rocks and catching our breath, a fine mist sprayed us. It is amazing what beauties you can find out in the middle of nowhere.


Now back on our boat, we are planning on doing some reading before we cook dinner. Tomorrow night we are heading out to Dent Island Lodge, which is supposed to be pretty swanky. After 5 nights at anchor and tonight in the “resort” we’ll be very happy to have a good hot shower and food that didn’t come out of a can!

July 5, 2007 – Walsh Cove

As the boat was being readied for departure, Ali sat at the base of the stairs looking at her Mom and Dad. It was clear to her that they had not remembered that Schnauzers, like humans need a potty break in the morning. They were too busy securing the kayaks, making coffee, etc. Eventually Ms. Alabama was noticed, and it was determined a quick ride to shore was needed. About time Alabama thought as she moved into position to board the dinghy. As she stepped onto the transom of the most graceful debutant and placed her front paws on the waiting vessel, it suddenly moved and left her feeling as though she were not quite on solid ground. Ms. Alabama went in with a loud splash, echoing off the small island to the stern of GONE WITH THE WIND. The problem was the dinghy was empty, but she was determined to catch it. Eventually she relized she was going the wrong way. Away from the boat, Mom, Dad and even Cooper were all still on the boat, and yet she was chasing the dinghy. She quickly turned around, and swam back to the boat. The whole time sucking in pints of saltwater. Once back on the boat, Mom toweled her off in the transom, and all of the saltwater caught up with her and made her sick, right there in the cockpit. How embarrassing was all she could think.

GONE WITH THE WIND cleared Pendrell Sound and moved North into Waddington Channel. A nice back eddy was caught on the East side of the channel pushing the boat through the water at 5.5 knots. The total trip time was 2 hours. After arriving in Walsh Cove, we discovered we were the third boat to arrive. A 40ish foot SYC boat sat in the NW corner, and a large 50 plus foot Nordhaven, Atlas, was anchored in the center of the cove. After circling the cove, we located a small nook with a small waterfall on the far SW side of the cove. We could clearly see a shelf off of land, and our depth sounder told us we were in 90 feet of water less than 200 feet from shore. We decided this would be our home for the night. We dropped the hook (anchor), and backed into the cove. Once the primary anchor line was set, we then took a dinghy to shore and found an old chain to tie our stern line to. As always the gymnastics involved in a stern tie prove interesting, but were successful. From our cockpit we hear the gentle splash of the waterfall which is not more than 50 feet from us. This is a great anchorage.

We secured the boat and jumped into the kayaks. On the East side of the cove is a series of small islands separated from the primary island by “False Pass”. With everyone loaded, our first stop was these small islands. At low tide they formed a small maze and were a lot of fun to paddle in. After leaving the island, and a quick break for the dogs, we headed East across Waddington Channel to a large waterfall. It was a long paddle, and when we got closer we realized the view was not going to be as great as we had hoped for. The paddle was good. We were ready to head back. On our way back we heard a large explosion. It is the type of explosion everyone dreads to hear. It sounds like a large drum being struck with the residual vibrations echoing. For those of you that have heard it, it is a boat running aground. Both of us looked at each other and said “we hope it is not GONE WITH THE WIND”. As we returned to the boat we did manage to pass Butler Point which is a 500 foot high piece of granite sticking up from the earth. We identified what looked to be petroglyphs, but could not be sure. When we got back to GONE WITH THE WIND, we circled the boat and could not find any evidence of an unfortunate encounter with the Earth. The harbor was clearly abuzz and we were concerned, but with the Sun’s angle, we could clearly see below our boat. Both the keel and rudder were clear of any rocks, so we felt confident it was not us. As we worried about the noise being us, the boat to our North was spending a large amount of time on deck, playing with their anchor, looking over the side, etc. Not normal activities for people who just got off of their own kayaking adventure. After about 20 minutes, they pulled their anchor, moved more toward the center of the harbor and reset. Though we are not absolutely sure about what happened, we think there anchor dragged and then when into a rock.

July 4, 2007 – Pendrell Sound

As we rounded the corner out of Tenedos Bay, it became clear why this area of the world has become so famous for its boating. We looked North, up Pendrell Sound, and was witness to mountains rising out of the water up past 5,000 feet. It reminded me of the pictures of the Norwegian fords’. The rock wall was vertical in most places. Pendrell Sound is surrounded by East Redonda Island. The island resembles a crab claw, and has a small opening on the South side. On the West side of the island is Mt. Bunsen raising 4,500 feet and snowcapped Mt. Addenbroke on the East side, which rises to about 5,000 feet.

As we cruised North up the Sound, we came across numerous waterfalls. These falls come from the top of the mountains, so if you look carefully, you can see them traverse over majestic drops. At each place we found one, we marked it on our GPS with a diamond for future exploration.

Reaching the North end of the Sound, you find there to be several great locations for temporary moorage. We decided that even given the call for 0 – 5 knots of wind out of the Northwest, we would play it safe and anchor at “Oyster Cove”, which is approximately one quarter of the way from the top of the Sound. The cove is actually unnamed, however in Anne and Laurence Yeadon-Jones book “Desolation Sound & the Discovery Islands” name it due to some of the unique natural wonders. (Note: we have found this book to be a great reference on anchoring throughout our trip) On the Southeast corner of the cove is a small island. This island is a steep squat island, with nothing but a few trees. Ideal for a stern tie. So we backed GONE WITH THE WIND down on her anchor, climbed a cliff to find a tree, and tide tight. We were approximately 100 – 125 feet from shore in 25 feet of water. Plenty of room. After ensuring we were secure, we dropped the kayaks in the water and headed to the North side of the harbor. Per our reading material, we understood there was a lagoon you could kayak to in mid and high tide. As we approached the shore, we noticed something quite strange. There were oysters covering every square inch of the beach area. There were big and small oysters, literally laying there for you to pick them up, shuck them and eat. What a shame neither of us enjoy raw oysters! Alabama jumped ashore, stepped on an oyster and looked back with a “what have you done to me now look”. With some difficulty, we picked our way to the lagoon. As it was low tide, the lagoon was only connected to the Sound by a small stream. This stream was draining the lagoon, but as the tide would come in, it would refill again and the cycle would continue. Just as we made it to the lagoon, we noticed the loud sound of water running, and noticed what appeared to be a granite quarry to our left. As we walked back into the woods we were met with massive devastation. It appears that this past Spring, there was a massive landslide. Trees and rocks are strewn everywhere. In an attempt for a little adventure, we decided to climb the face of the land slide and see if there were any pools to bath in. As we ventured farther, it became apparent that we would not meet with success. The landslide was so new that there were trees which were acting as pipes routing water in ever which direction. At this point the water was not winning, but over the years we both believe it will become a great place. The actual “new” falls are extremely high, and as stated, will develop into quite a site with minimal amount of effort to get to them.



After leaving the rock slide area, we went back to the lagoon. The water in Pendrell Sound proper is about 78 degrees and this was even warmer! I (Bob) pushed Cae in, then Alabama. Cooper would have nothing to do with me 
On our way back to the boat we picked 12 small oysters for dinner, and headed back for dinner. When we got to the boat, Cae stepped on the boat, waited for me to step on the transom, and then had her revenge as she pushed me back into the water. With all the swimming and excitement of the day, Ali, Coop and Cae took a short nap, while I explored the small island behind us. Cae brought smores fixins with us, so she really wanted to have a fire. So while they slept, I went about scoping and preparing for an evening of smores roasting. The location of our fire was 8 feet up a rock which jutted North into the Sound. To our left we had Mt. Bunsen, our right was Mt. Addenbroke and directly North was Mt. Whieldon a 6,000 foot pointed beauty. As the sun went down, we made smores and watched the world float on. The only problem was…the minpin…he did not bring A ball, but managed to find a way to get two out to the island. So the game of the evening was watch Mom fetch the ball out of the Sound as I drop it down the side of the rock. This went on until Cae looked at me with ball in hand and said throw it. I looked around and had nowhere to throw it but up a 20 high, very steep, “hill”. I threw, minpin climbed like a goat. Up, up, up he went. Through the bushes to the ball. It was quite a site and really entertained us. We later found out it was against the rules to have a fire, but was worth it this once.

As the sun went down, we decided to migrate to bed for the evening. It was 11:00PM and we were both tired. Now the only problem is that it was still dusk. You know the hazy light you have just before sun up or after sun down? That was it at 11:00PM. We endeavored to sleep anyway, and at 3:30 were awakened by one of the kayaks hitting the boat. It then hit us both. The sun was still in that “not really down” faze. We estimated it might have been dark for 3 maybe 4 hours, but not much more. This is a very strange area of the world.

July 3, 2007 – Tenedos Bay

Our departure from Cortes was wet. We had made an attempt to catch crab at the entrance to Cortes Bay, and did not meet with success. So score one for Cae on the mussel foraging and zero for Bob on the crab hunting. The next stop on the itinerary was Tenedos Bay, located approximately 13 miles North of Cortes. We rounded Mink Island to the North and headed into Tenedos. Tenedos is the first stop in Desolation Sound. Prior to this, we had merely been in the Strait of Georgia.

Upon entering Tenedos, there are four distinct anchoring areas. We explored all four, and then decided on choosing the Northern most cove. On the GPS this cove showed 33 feet deep until you hit land, and it was not a joke. We are tucked back into a cove with two mountains and one large hill on our three sides with just the West exposed. There is a sheer rock cliff to our North which we estimated to be well over 500 – 700 feet. When you look at our mast which is 56 feet in the foreground, the sense for the cliff is apparent. It is so tight with cliffs around use, that we echo when talking. Cooper last night found out he could bark, and dog would bark back. It took him a while to get tired of the game, especially once he figured it would howl as well. The other notable thing about this cove was the plethora of jellyfish. Literally thousands of them ranging from the size of a quarter up to almost 8 inches across. We wondered if maybe it is a breeding ground for them.
Anchoring was interesting. We dropped our anchor off the bow and then stern tied to the rocks behind us. That got a little interesting, but after several failed attempts, we were tucked in safely for the night. The shores surrounding us are covered with oysters and the rocks with wild blackberries. Unfortunately they weren’t ripe, but we’ll probably find some later in the week.



Around the corner from our anchorage is a path leading to Lake Unwin. This lake is about a quarter to half a mile up a very easy trail. We had heard it was a great place to swim, however we found it to have too many logs against the shore to be enjoyable. Instead of following the path back the way we came, we headed towards the sound of rushing water and discovered a fast moving stream that was about 10 feet wide. Assuming it would eventually dump out into the water, we decided to use it as our path. At its deepest, the stream was probably a little over 3 feet. After hiking through muggy woods, it was a refreshing break. Cooper for his part demonstrated that while only 13 pounds and standing a little over a foot, he can navigate any amount of water. He also showed off some pretty impressive leaping from log to log. Ali on the other hand, enjoyed the trip down in Dad’s arms. And what day would be complete without Cooper landing in the water? Of course when he jumped from the dinghy to the boat he missed again. Splash! So far he is maintaining once a day!
THE RAIN HAS STOPPED! We awoke this morning to a beautiful clear day. The sun is peaking in around the cliffs and into our little cove. It is looking like it is going to be a great day.

July 2, 2007 – Cortes Bay

We awoke in Gorge Harbour rather early. The sun comes up so early up here it is light by 4 am. After a vain attempt to sleep in, we got up to take the dogs to shore in the dinghy. It was a quick trip and with the rain, Alabama and Cooper were in no mood to fool around. We got back to the boat and I made Bob and I some breakfast sandwiches. After a couple cups of coffee, we decided to pull up the hook and get going. By 9:30 we were exiting Gorge Harbour and I was programming the chart plotter to Cortes Bay. It was a bumpy ride and Cooper and Alabama and I climbed back into bed to read. Interesting book called “Adrift” about a guy who had to abandon his sailboat in a trans-Atlantic voyage and survived on a life raft for 76 days. Anyway, not long into my read I began to smell something. Popping my head into the bathroom, I recoiled in horror (okay, overly dramatic but this was seriously gross). Somehow we had a toilet catastrophe and the blasted holding tank had backed up filling the shower area with sewage. Gross. Finally, after we hosed it out and disinfected, Bob and I settled down to finish our voyage. We pulled into Cortes Bay around 1:30 in the afternoon and were delighted to discover we were the only ones using the Yacht Club outstation. And what an outstation! Big decks overlook the bay and there is a common room where you can go and lounge around with books or board games.

After we explored the area and walked on a rocky beach with the pups, we loaded up the dinghy with our crab pot and set out to hunt and gather. We’ll see how much gather actually takes place. We dropped the crab pot in between some large rocks at the mouth of the bay. While out there, we discovered that the rocks were covered entirely with mussels. I picked some and am planning to experiment with them for dinner. Bob of course pointed out that it would be much easier to just pluck them off the pilings for the docks, but it seems much more rugged to climb onto the rocks for them. So, we’re planning on spending a lazy evening (with power and water!) on GONE WITH THE WIND and probably watch a movie on Bob’s laptop. It is still raining and we are resting up for the long hikes we plan on doing later this week when it is supposed to clear.

July 1, 2007 – Gorge Harbor

We started the morning in Campbell River, BC with Bob and Lauren. Last night we ate at Patti Finn’s Seafood, in Discovery Harbour, ON THE DOCKS….literally, the restaurant is part of the docks. Patti is a hoot. She has hair that resembles Pippi Longstocking, but at an age quite a few removed from the character. They have a small but good menu of salmon (but they were out of it), halibut (but they were out of it), swimming scallops (yes they swim), and crab. We had a great appetizer of mussels in a crème curry sauce. It was incredible! The beer was flowing and we had to wait a bit longer than we would have liked for our main course, but when it came, it was well worth it. The ladies got their meals first, and due to the late timing of dinner dug in with gusto. Bob and I had to wait, and the delay caused us to be out of synch. In the end it worked out in our favor. The cook came out and sat with Bob and I as we wrapped up our dinner, and then the ladies and the Ali and Cooper joined us. As the only ones left in the restaurant at 11:00 PM, it was a great time.
On the way back to the boat, we saw what is commonly referred to as a “blue moon”. This is when there is a full moon twice in the same month. As we left the restaurant the moon was coming up over the water with an eerie sheen. Absolutely beautiful!
This morning, we said goodbye to Bob and Lauren. As mentioned previously, there was a casualty with our French press, and this morning they replaced it with a new one from Starbucks. Thanks! We headed out of Discovery Marina, at 10:00 AM. The tide was flowing North at about 9 knots and we were heading South at 5 knots. The net was as you might imagine. So instead of fighting a nasty head current we ducked into a back eddy on the East side of the channel near Yaculta (yeah go Google that one) and weaved out of Discovery Passage (part of the Inside Passage which goes from Seattle to Alaska). From there we had an uneventful trip across Sutil Channel and into Gorge Harbour. Now Gorge Harbour is the most unique harbor entrance we have ever encountered. It is 150 – 200 feet wide, and averages 35 – 55 feet deep in the middle. The walls on the West side of the passage are 200 feet high. They tower over the passage and makes it look as though you are entering another dimension. Though we have not located them yet, we have read that there are Native American writing and pictures on the side of the cliff.

After anchoring on the North West side of the harbor, we put our new kayaks in the water. They are great. We had a headed to the front of the harbor and made an attempt to head out and check the cliff out again, but the tide was running too fast. We decided to turn around at the entrance and ride the tide back to GONE WITH THE WIND. On our way back we had a really incredible experience. A young seal took a liking to us and kept following all the way back to the boat. At one point he was about 10 feet from Cae, and Cooper got his scent and freaked. Cooper literally climbed up Cae’s head and was scared to death. This cat and mouse game continued for about an hour as we made our way back. Ali on the other hand, laid down in the center of the kayak with me and watched the world go by. What a difference between the two! As we approached GONE WITH THE WIND, Cae maneuvered Cooper for an exit onto the transom of the boat. He took the hint very well, jump up onto the transom, back down one Cae’s kayak and then tried to get onto Ali and my kayak. All went well in the first jump back onto Cae’s kayak, but when he tried to make it onto Ali’s and mine, he did not quite make it. His front feet were on my kayak, and his back were on Cae’s, and ever so slowly the two drifted apart with Cooper splaying himself in between. The end result was a splash. Tomorrow we are off to Cortes Island and an outstation.

Desolation Sound 2007 - The Trip North...

The trip North began at 10:00 PM, Thursday June 21st. The crew included Jeff C., Bob H. and myself (Bob). We caught the ebb tide at 23:26 and averaged between 5.5 and 6.5 knots for most of the evening. We lost light around 11:00 PM and travelled with the fishing and merchant fleet for the evening. At around 3:00 AM we passed two South bound cruise ships reportedly moving at 17 and 19 knots.

GONE WITH THE WIND entered the Strait of Juan De Fuca at approximately 3:30 AM, and after an hour of some lumpy cruising the Strait settled down. We have two new kayaks stored on the bow of the boat. In one series we took four waves over the bow. Rough, but overall GONE WITH THE WIND performed quite well for her third crossing of the Strait.

At 6:00 AM as we were 3.3 km West of Salmon Bank, we witnessed at least 20 orcas feeding. On several occasions we saw full breaches, and made sure to stay well clear of their activity. It was one of the highlights of the morning.
We arrived at the Henry Island Outstation in Roche Harbor at 9:18 AM. 11 hours under motor was 1 hour faster than we had planned. We estimate that if we had left closer to 12:00 AM, we would have caught the incoming tide prior to Lime Kiln, and been in even earlier (yes leaving later).

Friday evening was spent frolicking on the docks of Roche Harbor Resort, where Bob H. indulged in his first “fluffy duck”, a local drink from the resort.

Saturday we departed Roche Harbor and headed North to Stuart Island. On Stuart we anchored in Reid Harbor. Interestingly this is the same island Cae and I stopped at on our first trip to the San Juan Island’s three years ago. This time instead of raining non-stop, we had mild weather and decided to hike to the lighthouse at the North end of the island. The hike is around 3.5 miles one way and includes every terrain you can imagine. Once you get to the Turn Point lighthouse, you feel as though you are in a different world. It is a beautiful spot. Within ½ mile of the lighthouse is the deepest point in the San Juan and Gulf Islands (Canadian side). It measures over 1200 feet deep, but is very close to land.
Sunday morning we awoke early and headed the 2.5 hours South to Friday Harbor. There Jeff and I departed with GONE WITH THE WIND and Bob H. As Jeff and I boarded the East bound ferry Bob H. slipped his lines at the gas dock and headed North to the Secretary Islands, just North of Montague Harbor.

UPDATE: Bob H. reported in Monday evening. They left the Secretary Islands at 6:45 AM on Monday and caught a large flood all day Monday. They travelled across the Strait of Georgia, over 80 miles in a single day, and last reported to be 1 hour South of Cortes Bay on Cortes Island, BC. The only casualty was the coffee pot which was lost overboard due to unforeseen events.